At a Startup Thailand event in Bangkok this year, a coterie of
young Taiwanese fi rms showed off innovative technologies that
represent their country’s drive to bring its industrial excellence
to new markets. The contingent was an initiative under the Asia
Silicon Valley Development Plan (ASVDP), launched in 2016 to
promote Taiwanese innovation.
The Asia Silicon Valley Development Agency (ASVDA), which
works under the supervision of Taiwan’s National Development
Council, headed by Minister Chen Mei-Ling, is responsible for
cross-ministerial policy co-ordination and integration of resources
related to the ASVDP. Its impetus harks to President Tsai Ing-Wen’s
inaugural address of May 2016, which promised to “pursue a new
economic model for sustainable development based on the core
values of innovation, employment, and equitable distribution” and
to build an R&D-oriented innovation ecosystem focused on the
internet of things (IoT), start-ups and entrepreneurship.
Why does Taiwan’s ASVDP hold such a high priority for its
government? Taiwan’s economic growth peaked at up to 14%
per year in the late 1960s and early 1970s. But it has been in
a downward trend, and since 2000 has hovered at 2–3%. This
is a common problem for developed countries: when industrial
economies mature, growth slows. The ASVDP aims to boost the
economy by increasing the GDP contribution of those industries
with the most growth potential. For example, one of the key
goals of the ASVDP is to increase Taiwan’s share of the global
IoT market from 3.8% in 2015 to 5% by 2025.
The ASVDP’s quantifi able goals are well on their way to being
achieved. Under the plan, Taiwan’s share of the global IoT market
hit 4.24%—worth $39.1 billion—in 2018, well ahead of schedule.
Five major international fi rms—Google, Microsoft, Cisco,
Facebook and Amazon—have already invested in the country,
attracted by the size of its existing R&D facilities and the presence
of powerful local collaborators like TSMC and MediaTek.Taiwan’s relatively small domestic market, serving a
population of 23.5m people, is mainly composed of thousands of
SMEs. Economic expansion, then, depends on fi nding customers
abroad. This has meant that constructing a friendly start-up
ecosystem at home and enhancing connections to global
markets have become major policy focuses.
Accordingly, the Taiwanese government has implemented
a series of supportive measures. Comprehensive intellectual
property protection is in place, and the government has also
crafted sandbox regulations on fi nancial supervision and
autonomous vehicles. To boost the availability of capital, the
National Development Fund, a government VC fund, has initiated
the Business Angel Investment Program to help start-ups obtain
early-stage operating funds. And to attract foreign professionals,
government has relaxed restrictions on visas, employment and
residency, and off ered tax incentives. Entrepreneurs looking
to establish a business on the island can access immigration
schemes like the Entrepreneur Visa and Employment Gold Card.
The Taiwanese government has also been promoting
applications of smart-city technologies, encouraging enterprises
to develop intelligent solutions and export them to overseas
markets. Gogoro, Taiwan’s leading brand of electric scooter, has
launched a pilot scooter-sharing program in a bid to help develop
“smart-city ecosystems” with local government. With the brand
entering the European market, its e-scooters can now be seen in
cities like Berlin, Paris and Madrid.
At the same time, the ASVDP has seen Taiwan’s new
entrepreneurs participate in a number of innovative and
entrepreneurial activities overseas, demonstrating Taiwan’s canny
eff orts to match local tech with foreign needs. For instance,
Taiwanese start-ups reached approximately $283m in business
opportunities at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in the
United States in 2018 and 2019.
As the result of Taiwan’s hard work, Minister Chen highlights
that Taiwan was ranked as one of the world’s four “super
innovators” by the World Economic Forum in 2018, along with
Germany, the United States and Switzerland. This shows that
Taiwan has successfully established itself in this niche.
Taiwanese government and industry are incredibly open to
working with others. If foreign enterprises and investors would
benefi t from co-operating with Taiwanese companies, ASVDA
can off er various kinds of assistance. For example, a European
company wanting to create a new IoT-enabled product might
contact ASVDA for referrals to design and manufacturing partners,
as well as incubators and innovation hubs that can help them grow.
Because of its small domestic market, Taiwan must maintain
an outward focus in striving to boost growth by fostering innovative
start-ups and SMEs. Taiwan has paid great attention to constructing
a comprehensive start-up ecosystem, and is a trustworthy partner,
says Minister Chen. Given Taiwan’s mature start-up and innovation
ecosystem, foreign investors and fi rms looking to boost their
products’ value need only reach out to harness the power of
Taiwanese ingenuity.ADVERTISEMENT
Minister Chen Mei-Ling of
the NDC highlights that
Taiwan has been ranked
as one of the world’s four
“super innovators”.INNOVATING
FOR THE FUTURE
Taiwan’s Asia Silicon Valley Development Plan aims to
boost growth by forging connections abroad